Racing game apparatus



June 22, 1965 w. D. DUNN 3,190,652

RACING GAME APPAR Filed Aug. 16, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet l WALT D. DUNN BY adW ATTORNEY.

June 22, 1965 w. D. DUNN RACING GAME APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 16, 1962 INVENTOR. WALTER D DUNN BY a g o o my ATTORNEY June 22, 1965 w. D. DUNN 3,1 0, 5

RACING GAME APPARATUS Filed Aug. 16, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ll IG. 6 INVENTOR. WALTER D. DUNN ATTORNEY.

United States Patent sasaesa RACING GAME APPARATUS Walter B. Dunn, 23 Evelyn Place, Maiden, Mass. Filed Aug. 16, 1962, Ser. No. 218,215 Claims. (Cl. 273$6) This invention relates to an amusement device in which a number of game pieces are moved over a predetermined course in competition with each other in a manner in which the outcome of the race is determined solely by chance Without any external control. While the invention and the apparatus constituting the invention is shown in a form similar to a horse race with a maximum of six horses, the competing objects may take other suitable and desirable forms.

An important feature of this invention consists of mechanism for advancing all the game pieces as a group, retarding each of them individually by random retarding means and by amounts over which there are no means of control.

One object of the invention is to provide a motor driven, mechanical device which is economical to manufacture, easy to transport, and may be readily assembled, adjusted and repaired if required.

My invention consists of five basic components; a stationary horizontal foundation, a stationary elevated track assembly, a number of horizontal revolvable free-wheeling retarder bars producing unpredictable amounts of retardation for the individual game pieces, a movable chassis superimposed above the track assembly, and slidable game pieces advancing in a group on the chassis but retarded individually by uncontrollable means.

For a greater understanding of the present invention together with other and further objects thereof, reference is had to the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of the race track showing the chassis but without mono-rails or game pieces in place.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the track with chassis and game pieces in place.

FIG. 2A is an enlarged top view of the chassis and game pieces in position on a portion of the track assembly.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a section of the chassis in place on the track, partly broken away to show two of the game pieces.

FIG. 4 is a cross section view taken on line d4 of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of one retarder bar showing the vertical retarder fingers.

FIG. 6 is a cross section view taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 2A.

Referring to the drawings, the rack track device therein shown, as illustrative of one embodiment of my invention, comprises: a stationary honizontal elevated track il'tl having a back stretch, a home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semicircular far turn. The movable portion of the device may be actuated by an electric motor 11, power or battery driven, or may be propelled manually. Connected to the motor is a horizontally positioned grooved driving pulley 12 concentric with one turn of the track and a similar driven pulley concentric with the other turn, connected together by a continuous flexible belt 14 which may be adjusted by any conventional device 15. As the belt passes from pulley 12 to pulley 13, it is supported adjacent the inner track on vertically positioned grooved roller pulleys 16 adapted to rotate on brackets 16A fixedly attached to track foundation 17. Positioned on foundation 17 are transverse track bed supports 18 on the tops of whichare parallel track bed strips 19, undulatory in contour, attached to supports 18 by fastening means 19A. The strips 19 are 3,i%,h52 l atented June 22, 1965 separated from each other on the straight-a-Ways by parallel slots 2d. The undulatory strips 21 on the turns have no intervening slots. Bracketed to the foundation 17 are retarder bar supports 22 and 23 positioned along the straight-a-ways. An outside track rail 24 running parallel to the track bed strips is also attached to the foundation 17 by brackets 25.

The movable portion of the device, adapted to move in a horizontal plane parallel to said track, is a chassis 40, consisting of the belt 14, perpendicular to which is connected a transverse leader bar 41 and two or more transverse spacer bars 42. The chassis 40 is superimposed on the track bed 19. Connected to the leader bar 41 are the ends of a multiplicity of narrow resilient bands, preferably or" steel, shown in this embodiment as six, 43, 44, 45, d6, 47 and 48. These bands are spaced equidistant from each other by spacers 49 and are held vertically on edge by spacer bars 42 which are provided with spaced vertical slots 5%) through which the bands may freely slip. These bands act as mono-rails on which the game pieces are positioned. The inner ends of the leader and spacer bars are fixedly attached to the belt. The rails vary in length from the inside of the track to the outside of the track to compensate for the difference in length of the paths around the turns; these lengths are proportional to the diameters of the concentric track paths of the turns. The outer ends of leader bar 41 and spacer bars 42 have slider shoes 51 which rest on and slide along the outside track rail 24. There is also fastened to the foundation 17 a continuous outside track guide 52 having an inner edge 53 over which a projection 54, attached to the outside end of mono-rail 48, is adapted to wipe. The game pieces tit), 61, 62, 63, 64, and 65 shown here as six horses may be in the form of dogs or other objects used in competitions of speed. Depending from the body of the house is a Y-shaped support 17 pivoted to the body of the horse by the pivot 76?. At the end of the stem of the Y is a front rail shoe 68 in the form of an inverted U. Depending from the rear legs of the horse is a rear rail shoe 69 also in the form of an inverted U. These shoes are adapted to position the horse on any one of the monorails and allow the piece to move with the rail.

Depending from the front rail shoe is a wiper arm 67, adapted to impinge on the protruding revolvable retarder fingers as described below. Depending from the rear rail shoe 69 is a contact leg 66, adapted to ride over an undulatory bed strip 19, giving the rear portion of the horse an undulatory up and down motion around the pivot 76. Positioned between the foundation 1'7 and the track bed strips 19 are transverse horizontal revolvable free-wheeling retarder bars 8% positioned across the back stretch and the home stretch. These bars are journalled at their ends to retarder bar supports 22 and 23. Fixedly positioned on the retarder bars and perpendicular to them are thin vertical protruding impinging fingers 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, and 33, separated from each other by spacers 81 and 82 so that they extend upwardly through the slots 20 which are positioned between the track bed strips 19. These fingers may be of many dissimilar sizes and shapes, such as circles, ovals, triangles, polygons or combinations of them or of parts thereof. Each retarder bar has a different random assembly of fingers adapted to retard the forward motion of the game pieces by varying amounts as they are advanced on the chassis. Connected to retarder bar 86 by shaft 81A is a retarder knob 89 adapted to be manually revolved before or after or during any race to break up any suggestion of a fixed retardation pattern.

In assembling, the chassis, with belt, leader bar, spacer bars and mono-rails attached, is put into position by placing the belt 14 in place around pulleys l2 and 13 and adjusting its tension by means of mechanism 15. Around the inner track, the belt is supported and kept horizontal by the grooved rollers 16. The free ends of the leader bar 41 and the spacer bars 42, acting as slider shoes, are positioned on top of the outside track rail 24 over which they are adapted to slide. The spacer bars are positioned so as to keep the mono-rails spaced from each other as the chassis passes around the turns.

The leader bar 41, with the forward ends of the monorails attached thereto, is placed at any designated starting position. The front and rear shoes of each of the game pieces are placed on a mono-rail with its depending contact leg 66 positioned on the corresponding track bed strip 19. The depending wiper arm extends downward- 1y through the slot 20 positioned below it so that in operation it is adapted to impinge on the vertical fingers of the various retarder bars.

In operation, when the motive power is applied, the chassis with superimposed rider pieces moves around the track, since each of the pieces is of sufiicient weight to maintain its position on the mono-rail. Each rider piece is also so slidably mounted as to be momentarily retarded on contact with the retarder fingers revolving with the retarder bars positioned along the back stretch and the home stretch.

As the chassis proceeds around the track, one or more times, the impingements with the retarder fingers change the positions of the pieces on the mono-rails by unpredictable amounts. These amounts are unpredictable, first due to the dragging of the contact leg on the nonuniform contour of the undulatory track beds; secondly by the impingements on the dissimilar retarder fingers assembled at random and adapted to be revolved a changeable amount by every contact with every wiper arm. It is important to note that each impingement by each wiper arm changes the position of all six fingers on each arm as the various wipers pass from arm to arm, and third by the manual operation of the retarder knobs; the maximum amount of retardation being restricted by the length of the shortest mono-rail.

At any given time, when the motive power is removed, the forward motion of the chassis is stopped and the then relative position of the retarded game pieces is noted to determine the winner according to the rules of the game being played.

While the preferred embodiment of my invention has been described in detail, it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the particular construction set forth, since various changes in the form, material, proportions and arrangement of parts and in the detail of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, or destroying any of the advantages contained in the same, heretofore described and defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A competitive race track game comprising (I) a stationary horizontal foundation,

(II) a stationary horizontal elevated track assembly provided with a continuous undulatory track bed positioned above said foundation, and having a straight back stretch, a straight home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semicircular far turn,

(IIA) said track comprising a multiplicity of stationary parallel undulatory strips, spaced from each other on transverse track bed supports, said track assembly being provided with belt supporting free-wheeling pulleys positioned vertically adjacent said track bed supports, an outside track rail, adapted to support the lead bar of a flexible movable chassis positioned above said track bed, and an outside track guide positioned adjacent said outside track rail,

(III) a multiplicity of horizontal revolvable free-wheeling retarder bars provided with fixed vertical protruding impingement fingers positioned between said foundation and said track bed, said fingers being A, rigidly attached to said retarder bars and extending upwardly between the spaces separating said undulatory strips and being adapted to impinge directly on slidable game pieces,

(IIIA) said retarder bars being transversely positioned across said back stretch and said home stretch,

(IV) said movable chassis comprising a continuous flexible belt and rider monorails superimposed horizontally above said track bed and adapted to be moved as a unit in a horizontal plane parallel to said track bed and to follow the contour of said track,

(V) and a multiplicity of slidable game pieces positioned unattached on said chassis and adapted to be intermittently contacted by said fingers to retard the forward motion of said pieces by varying indeterminate amounts, said pieces being provided with a hinged portion adapted to be moved up and down by contact with said undulatory strips.

2. A competitive race track game comprising (I) a stationary horizontal foundation,

(II) a stationary horizontal elevated track assembly provided with a continuous undulatory track bed positioned above said foundation, and having a straight back stretch, a straight home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semicircular far turn,

(IIA) said track comprising a multiplicity of stationary parallel undulatory strips, spaced from each other on transverse track bed supports, said track assembly being provided with belt supporting free-wheeling pulleys positioned vertically adjacent said track bed supports, an outside track rail, adapted to support the lead bar of a flexible movable chassis positioned above said track bed, and an outside track guide positioned adjacent said outside track rail,

(III) a multiplicity of horizontal revolvable free-wheeling retarder bars provided with fixed vertical protruding impinging fingers positioned between said foundation and said track bed, said fingers being rigidly attached to said retarder bars and extending upwardly between the spaces separating said undulatory strips and being adapted to impinge directly on slidable game pieces,

(IIIA) said retarder bars being transversely positioned across said back stretch and said home stretch,

(IV) said movable chassis superimposed horizontally above said track bed and adapted to be moved as a unit in a horizontal plane parallel to said track bed and to follow the contour of said track,

(IVA) said chassis comprising a continuous flexible belt supported and positioned by said freewheeling pulleys, a multiplicity of narrow resilient bands forming rider mono-rails and varying in length from the inside of said track to the outside of said track, said mono-rails being held vertically on edge by a horizontal transverse leader bar to which they are fixedly attached and by horizontal transverse spacer bars provided with spaced narrow vertical slots through which said mono-rails slide freely, holding said rails equally spaced from each other, said leader bar and spacer bars being attached to said belt on their inner ends and being supported on their outer ends by said outside track rail on which they are adapted to slide,

(V) and a multiplicity of slidable game pieces positioned unattached on said chassis and adapted to be intermittently contacted by said fingers to retard the forward motion of said pieces by varying indeterminate amounts, said pieces being provided with a hinged portion adapted to be moved up and down by contact with said undulatory strips.

3,190,652 6 3. A competitive race track game comprising above said foundation, and having a back stretch, (I) a stationary horizontal foundation, a home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semi- (H) a stationary horizontal elevated track assembly circular far turn,

provided with a continuous undulatory track bed positioned above said foundation, and having a straight back stretch, a straight home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semicircular far turn,

(IIA) said track comprising a multiplicity of stationary parallel undulatory strips, spaced from (IIA) said track comprising a multiplicity of stationary parallel undulatory strips, spaced from each other on transverse track bed supports, said track assembly being provided with belt sup porting free-wheeling pulleys positioned vertically adjacent said track bed supports, an outeach other on transverse track bed supports, said 10 side track rail, adapted to support the outer portrack assembly being provided with belt supporttion of said chassis above said track bed, and an ing free-wheeling pulleys positioned vertically outside track guide positioned adjacent said outadjacent said track bed supports, an outside side track rail,

track rail, adapted to support the lead bar of a (11.8) said track assembly being provided with a flexible movable chassis positioned above said horizontal driver pulley concentric with one track bed, and an outside track guide positioned track turn and actuated by a conventional drivadjacent said outside track rail, ing mechanism and a horizontal driven pulley (IIB) said track assembly provided with a horiconcentric with the other track turn and having zontal driver pulley concentric with one track a belt adjusting mechanism, turn and actuated by a conventional driving (III) a multiplicity of horizontal revolvable freernechanism and a horizontal driven pulley conwheeling retarder bars provided with fixed vertical centric with the other track turn and having a protruding impinging fingers positioned between said belt adjusting mechanism, foundation and said track bed,

(III) a multiplicity of horizontal revolvable free-wheel- (IIIA) said retarder bars being transversely posiing retarder bars provided with fixed vertical protioned across said back stretch and said home truding impinging fingers positioned between said stretch, foundation and said track bed, (l'IIB) said fingers being rigidly attached to said (HIA) said retarder bars being transversely posiretarder bars and of diverse sizes and shapes tioned across said back stretch and said home and extending upwardly through said spaces bestretch, 3O tween said strips,

(IIIB) said fingers being rigidly attached to said (N) a movable chassis superimposed horizontally retarder bars and of diverse sizes and shapes above said track bed and adapted to be moved as a and extending upwardly through said spaces, beunit in a horizontal plane parallel to said track bed, tween said strips, (IVA) said chassis comprising a continuous flex- (W) said movable chassis superimposed horizontally ible belt, a multiplicity of narrow resilient bands above said track bed and adapted to be moved as a forming rider mono-rails and varying in length unit in a horizontal plane parallel to said track bed, from the inside of said track to the outside of and to follow the contour of said track, said track, said mono-rails being held vertically (IVA) said chassis comprising a continuous fiexon edge by a horizontal transverse leader bar ible belt supported and positioned by said free- 40 to which they are fixedly attache-d and by horiwheeling pulleys, a multiplicity of narrow rezontal transverse spacer bars provided with silient bands forming rider mono-rails and varyspaced narrow vertical slots through which said ing in length from the inside of said track to the mono-rails slide freely, holding said rails equally outside of said track, said mono-rails being held spaced from each other, said leader bar and vertically on edge by a horizontal transverse spacer bars being attached to said belt on their leader bar to which they are fixedly attached and inner ends and being supported on their outer by horizontal transverse spacer bars provided ends by said outside track rail on which they are with spaced narrow vertical slots through which adapted to slide, said mono-rails slide freely, holding said rails (IVB) the lengths of said mono-rails being proequally spaced from each other, said leader bar portional to the diameters of the concentric and spacer bars being attached to said belt on track paths on said track turns, their inner ends and being supported on their (V) and a multiplicity of slidable game pieces posiouter ends by said outside track rail on which tioned unattached on said chassis and adapted to be they are adapted to slide, intermittently contacted by said fingers to retard the (IVB) the lengths of said mono-rails being proforward motion of said pieces by varying indeterportional to the diameters of the concentric minate amounts, track paths on said track turns, (VA) each of said game pieces having a front rail (V) and a multiplicity of slidable game pieces posishoe and a rear rail shoe, both shoes being tioned unattached on said chassis and adapted to be adapted to ride on a mono-rail, intermittently contacted by said fingers to retard the (VB) each of said pieces being provided with deforward motion of said pieces by varying indetermipending contact legs adapted to wipe over said nate amounts, said pieces being provided with a undulatory paths to simulate up and down m0- hinged portion adapted to be moved up and down tion and with depending wiper arms adapted to by contact with said undulatory strips, impinge intermittently on said revolvable re- (VA) each of said game pieces having a front tarder fingers.

rail shoe and a rear rail shoe, both shoes being adapted to ride on a mono-rail, said front shoe carrying a depending wiper arm adapted to impinge on said fingers, said rear shoe carrying a depending contact leg adapted to ride over said undulatory bed strip.

4. A competitive race track game comprising (1) a stationary horizontal foundation,

(II) a stationary horizontal elevated track assembly provided with an undulatory track bed positioned 7 5. A competitive race track game comprising (I) a stationary horizontal foundation,

(II) a stationary horizontal elevated track assembly provided with an undulatory track bed positioned above said foundation, and having a back stretch, a home stretch, a semicircular near turn and a semicircular far turn,

(IIA) said track comprising a multiplicity of stationary parallel undulatory strips, spaced from each other on transverse track bed supports, said track assembly being provided with belt supporting free-wheeling pulleys positioned vertically adjacent said track bed supports, an outside track rail, adapted to support the outer portion of said chassis above said track bed, and an outside track guide positioned adjacent said outside track rail,

(IIB) said track assembly being provided with a horizontal driver pulley concentric with one track turn and actuated by a conventional driving mechanism and a horizontal driven pulley concentric with the other track turn and having a belt adjusting mechanism,

(III) a multiplicity of horizontal revolvable freewheeling retarder bars provided with fixed vertical protruding impinging fingers positioned between said foundation and said track bed,

(IIIA) said retarder bars being transversely positioned across said back stretch and said home stretch,

(IIIB) said fingers being rigidly attached to said retarder bars and of diverse sizes and shapes and extending upwardly through said spaces between said strips,

(IIIC) said retarder bars being provided with attached retarder knobs adapted to be manually revolved,

(IV) a movable chassis superimposed horizontally above said track bed and adapted to be moved as a unit in a horizontal plane parallel to said track bed,

(IVA) said chassis comprising a continuous flexible belt, a multiplicity of narrow resilient bands forming rider mono-rails and varying in length from the inside of said track to the outside of said track, said mono-rails being held vertically on edge by a horizontal transverse leader bar to which they are fixedly attached and by horizontal transverse spacer bars provided with spaced narrow vertical slots through which said mono-rails slide freely, holding said rails equally spaced from each other, said leader bar and spacer bars being attached to said belt on their 9 u inner ends and being supported on their outer ends by said outside track rail on which they are adapted to slide,

(IVB) the lengths of said mono-rails being proportional to the diameters of the concentric track paths on said turns,

(V) and a multiplicity of slidable game pieces positioned unattached on said chassis and adapted to be intermittently contacted by said fingers to retard the forward motion of said pieces by varying indeterminate amounts,

(VA) each of said game pieces being provided with a front rail shoe and a rear rail shoe, both shoes being adapted to ride on a mono-rail,

(VB) each of said pieces being provided with depending contact legs adapted to wipe over said undulatory paths to simulate up and down motion and with depending wiper arms adapted to impinge intermittently on said revolvable retarder fingers,

(VC) each of said pieces being of sufficient weight to move with said chassis by maintaining its position on a mono-rail and being slidably mounted on one of said mono-rails and adapted to be momentarily retarded on contact with said retarder fingers.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 870,473 11/07 Schultze 273-86 916,151 3/09 Hobdey 273-86 1,778,038 10/30 Parke.

2,077,464 4/37 Crowther et al. 273-86 2,093,522 9/37 Keith 273-86 FOREIGN PATENTS 480,733 2/38 Great Britain.

962,959 12/49 France.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner.

EVON C. BLUNK, DELBERT B. LOWE, Examiners. 

1. A COMPETITIVE RACE TRACK GAME COMPRISING (1) A STATIONARY HORIZONTAL FOUNDATION, (11) A STATIONARY HORIZONTAL ELEVATED TRACK ASSEMLY PROVIDED WITH A CONTINUOUS UNDULATORY TRACK BED POSITIONED ABOVE SAID FOUNDATION, AND HAVING A STRAIGHT BACK STRETCH, A STRAIGHT HOME STRETCH, A SEMICIRCULAR NEAR TURN AND A SEMICIRCULAR FAR TURN, (11A) SAID TRACK COMPRISING A MULTIPLICITY OF STATIONARY PARALLEL UNDULATORY STRIPS, SPACED FROM EACH OTHER ON TRANSVERSE TRACK BED SUPPORTS, SAIE TRACK ASSEMBLY BEING PROVIDED WITH BELT SUPPORTING FREE-WHEELING PULLEYS POSITONED VERTICALLY ADJACENT SAID TRACK BED SUPORTS, AN OUTSIDE TRACK RAIL, ADAPTED TO SUPPORT THE LEAD BAR OF A FLEXIBLE MOVABLE CHASSIS POSITIONED ABOVE SAID TRACK BED, AND AN OUTSIDE TRACK GUIDE POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID OUTSIDE TRACK RAIL, (111) A MULTIPLICITY OF HORIZONTAL REVOLVABLE FREE-WHEELING RETARDER BARS PROVIDED WITH FIXED VERTICAL PROTRUDING IMPINGEMENT FINGERS POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID FOUNDATING AND SAID TRACK BED, SAID FINGERS BEING RIGIDLY ATTACHED TO SAID RETARDER BARS AND EXTENDING UPWARDLY BETWEEN THE SPACES SEPARATING SAID UNDULATORY STRIPS AND BEING ADAPTED TO IMPINGE DIRECTLY ON SLIDABLY GAME PIECES, (11A) SAID RETARDER BARS BEING TRANSVERSELY POSITIONED ACROSS SAID BACK STRETCH AND SAID HOME STRETCH, (1V) SAID MOVABLE CHASSIS COMPRISING A CONTINUOUS FLEXIBLE BELT AND RIDER MONORAILS SUPERIMPOSED HORIZONTALLY ABOVE SAID TRACK BED AND ADAPTED TO BE MOVED AS A UNIT IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE PARALLEL TO SAID TRACK BED AND TO FOLLOW THE CONTOUR OF SAID TRACK, (V) AND A MULTIPLICITY OF SLIDABLE GAME PIECES POSITIONED UNATTCHED ON SAID CHASSIS AND ADAPTED TO BE INTERMITTENTLY CONTACTED BY SAID FINGERS TO RETARD THE FORWARD MOTION OF SAID PIECES BY VARYING INDETERMINATE AMOUNTS, SAID PIECES BEING PROVIDED WITH A HINGED PORTION ADAPTED TO BE MOVED UP AND DOWN BY CONTACT WITH SAID UNDULATORY STRIPS. 